WWE: CM Punk, Vince McMahon Cannot Re-Create the McMahon/Austin Feud

While watching last night’s episode of Raw and witnessing the confrontation between CM Punk and Vince McMahon, it became evident to me that I did not want to see another incarnation of the Vince McMahon/Steve Austin feud that helped prompt and promote the “Attitude Era” in professional wrestling.

Professional wrestling outfits have a habit of trying to re-invent the wheel with skits, promos and angles that worked in the past, but there is nothing like the original.

I guess what I am trying to say is, CM Punk is no Steve Austin, and a feud between the current champion of the WWE and the owner of the company he works for would never have the fervor of the original clash.

And with time and age being what it is, the idea of McMahon getting in the ring with Punk may not be the best thing for wrestling’s most popular senior citizen. This is true especially in light of the recent events with Jerry Lawler.

As I watched the initial confrontation and Punk’s diatribe, which led to him slapping McMahon after he went off on Austin, McMahon, the WWE and anything he could put his finger on, I was reminded of how Austin stuck to the WWE, McMahon and the tunneled feud.

Punk seems to want to blame everyone for his “disrespect” within the company. Somehow, the WWE is truly missing on the potential for Punk and Austin to get in each other’s faces. If the McMahon confrontation and innuendo was an attempt at trying to pacify the WWE fans who want to see the two loners in the ring, it sorely missed.

Punk has attacked the WWE for the past year based on what he thought was a lack of respect for his talent and his ability to lead this company. He has done so in broken harmony. His tune is uneven, his pitch a little off and annoying. And still, he is the best at what he does.

He may not be the best of all time, but he could give others a run for their money.

As fans, we hope to be entertained. We hope to be surprised. We hope to see something we have not seen before or see something we have seen before, but only better. Punk/McMahon would not be better; in fact, it would be an insult to the core establishment that really left an indelible mark on this company.

Punk may be great, and he might growing into one of the best of all time, but let’s be honest in the fact that he will never be Austin. He will never be Shawn Michaels. He will never be Roddy Piper, Randy Savage or Ric Flair. He is a new version of a loner, which plays well to today’s fan.

But today’s fan does not want to see an ill-fated re-creation. They want to see past episodes of the original and remember it like it was yesterday.

If this was to happen and McMahon was in Punk’s face week after week, it would only soil what was a great part of wrestling history.